The Nexus of Diet, Gut Microbiota and Inflammatory Bowel Diseases in Dogs

Abstract

Canine inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD) are of increasing interest in veterinary medicine. They refer to complex and debilitating conditions of dogs' gastrointestinal tract. Although little evidence for causal inferences is currently available, it is believed that IBD pathophysiology entails intricate interactions between environmental factors, the intestinal immune system, and the microbial communities that colonize the gut. To better understand the mechanisms underlying these disorders, leveraging factors associated with the development of these diseases is imperative. Of these factors, emerging evidence supports the role of dietary patterns as key players influencing the composition and function of gut microbes, with subsequent effects on health and disease. In this review, we particularly focus on addressing IBD in dogs and discuss how specific nutrients may elicit or relieve gut inflammation. Gaining mechanistic insights into such interplay and the underpinning mechanisms is key to inferring dietary recommendations, and setting up new and promising therapeutics.

Keywords: canine inflammatory bowel disease (IBD); diet; gut microbiota; holobiont.

Figure 1

Overview of anti- and pro-inflammatory influences of dietary interventions in dogs. Dietary patterns are linked with changes in the composition and function of the gut microbiota in dogs. Up and down arrows represent increases and decreases, respectively. SCFAs: short-chain fatty acids, BA: bile acids.